London Zoo has launched a desperate appeal to find a mate for a “gorgeously ugly” fish on the brink of extinction.

The Mangarahara cichlid has died out in the wild and the zoo wants to start a breeding project to save the species from Madagascar, but the only three known fish in captivity — two in London and one in Berlin — are male, and two of them are more than 12 years old.

There had been a female at Berlin but attempts to breed ended in disaster when the male ended up killing her. The Zoological Society of London has already searched the world’s public aquariums. Now their only chance is it to find a female in a private collection.